The Arts Council has announced plans to mark the Republic of Malta's 42nd birthday on Facebook, in an effort to sow the seeds of public discussion.

“Republics were born as a result of action taken by people 'facing' each other, whether on the battleground, the king's court or in parliament,” it said in a statement released this morning, revealing that it will be uploading 42 posts to Facebook on the 12th and 13th December - one every 42 minutes.

While the birth of the republic was a particular moment in time characterised by people or their representatives interacting directly with each other, it said, today, people interact continuously through the internet, in particular on Facebook. It is estimated that 89% of Malta uses the social media platform.

“From this year onwards, we are proposing that Republic Day in Malta is commemorated by recreating it for today's world. From face-to-face to Facebook.

In this context, Arts Council Malta is launching a Facebook page which will plant the seeds so that each year, Republic Day comes to life with comments and people's interactions.”

“Since this will be the 42nd anniversary from the founding of the republic, 42 posts will be published on this page, one every 42 minutes. This will take place on the 12th and 13th December. The posts will be aimed at informing the public and fostering discussion about this historic day. It is planned that in the coming years, this initiative takes other, more intense, forms that are living proof of people's interactions today. In this way, every year Republic Day is brought to life by the people, who were and will remain its authors.”

Justice and Culture Minister Owen Bonnici praised the initiative. “It is of great pleasure to me that we are commemorating this historic day in this innovative way,” he said. “This creative gesture, while reflecting the core of the founding of the republic – which means that it belongs to the people because it was created by people – is being carried out through one of the principal means of communication today. I augur that this initiative picks up and takes a more interactive form in the future.”

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